2019-30 || SMITTY'S OYSTER BAR

We planned a very laid back "bachelorette" for TPL of outdoorsy activities in the Gibsons, Sechelt, and Halfmoon Bay area. My only regret was that there wasn't very much drinking on my part, because it was my car and I wasn't about to authorize any of the others to operate it (too much risk in case something did happen!). 

The trip started off with a long and tedious wait outside of Smitty's Oyster Bar. They don't take reservations, as we found out from their snarky voicemail message, and while we arrived at around 6 or 6:30PM, there were a few large parties who just would not leave, so we ended up sitting down at around 7:30 or 8PM. The real kicker was that the hostess told us that she'd text us if we wanted to wander, so we did... Except she never texted. I swear I saw other people who came by after us, go in before us. 

However, we were very determined to eat here, because TPL wanted to have raw oysters, and this place had some good reviews. Ended up just waiting, right in front of the restaurant. 

Was it worth the wait? 

While we did not receive prodigious amounts of food, what arrived on the plates looked presentable and appetizing. We ended up ordering the shrimp, salmon cakes, and scallop risotto, with raw oysters to share.

This was not enough for us, starving travellers, so we ended up adding the chicken trout (note: this is not chicken):

Not sure if I'd go back for the main dishes again, but if I had to, I'd order the chicken trout again, because it was so light and crispy. The risotto was still crunchy, but I'll give them props for trying. Risotto is hard to get right! The rest of it was decent, nothing too memorable about the shrimp or the cakes. The oysters were better than what I've had at other places, very sweet and fresh. This would be a nice spot to hang out by the docks, sipping on a beverage of your choice, and slurping up freshly shucked oysters, at $3.50 a pop. 

So, was it worth it? 

I mean, we ended up eating it all, every last crumb of crunchy risotto. Probably from hunger after waiting so long, in combination with the small portions. 

Sometimes, I'll judge people on their food choices, and I did question some of the food decisions we made collectively, on this trip. I mean, it's so hard to not be doubtful with strangers who are just becoming new friends. I'm sure I'm not the only person out there making flash judgments about strangers, friends, even family members. This guy is too old for her, he doesn't have a real job, she wears too much makeup, and they're so stingy with their money. He associates with him or her, so that makes them a bad person... Where do these judgments take us?